France -- Mirande Festival Coming Up

Line dancing at Equiblues, 2004. Photo (c) Ruth Ellen Gruber

A posting I saw on the web reminds me that the Mirande Country Music Festival in southwest France is coming up July 9-14. It attracts more than 160,000 people to a mix of country, rock, Celtic and other music and crowdwise, it is probably the biggest country festival in Europe. In addition to the music, there are stands, games, line-dancing and you name it.

Among the line up is Roch Voisine, Cock Robin, Michelle Wright, Ricky Norton, Mike Sanchez and Hillbilly Boggiemen

The festival takes place over France's 14th July National Holiday - Bastille Day. This is the biggest festival of the French year, so you'll be treated to a massive fireworks display and
a big party atmosphere.

The town of Mirande hosts the festival each year. Mirande is a beautiful medieval town in the Gascony region of France. A region famed for its food and scenery. This is an unspoilt area of rural France with a timeless quality of life, there is little traffic so driving is a joy amidst the beautiful ever-changing scenery.

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There are dozens of country festivals in France throughout the summer (see my article on them on the NYTimes web site) -- the most prestigious is the Country Rendez-vous in Craponne, which takes place just two weeks after Mirande. One week after Craponne is the International Bluegrass Festival at La Roche sur Foron -- and one week after that is the great Equiblues rodeo and country music festival in St. Agreve....

And then, there are all those festivals in Germany, Poland, Austria, Lithuania, Switzerland, Sweden, Czech Republic.....impossible to keep track of them all....